Love Never
by escapistone
Summary: A Short inspection of the torture of Celebrian when she was captured by the orcs. Rated R to be safe.


I do not own the characters or settings herein presented. Neither am I making money off of this story or portrayal of said characters. The rights belong to Tolkien's estate, New Line cinema, etc.

WARNING: Fairly graphic violence ahead. Author will not be held responsible for upset stomachs and / or nightmares etc. of the impressionable. Really, you may lose your lunch if you get queasy easy.

This is purely my own (aka highly questionable) interpretation of the attack on Celebrian. It came out of 2 musings that  I had. 1. Most fics assume that Celebrian was raped when she was attacked. My muse challenged me to write one where she was not. 2. According to experts, it is the psychological rather than the physical aspects of kidnapping and torture that most influence the captured.

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Celebrian sighed as her dreams woke her. Silently she slipped from between the sheets of her bed and walked to the window. Unbidden, her hand automatically lifted to her left temple. Long fingers traced the raised welt that was slowly receding along with the various other bruises she suffered.

Though she did not wish it, memories began to replay in her mind. It had been a beautiful day of travel. It had been a horrid night of torture. The screams that echoed at first had been the screams of battle. The same had turned to hoarse rasping of half formed pleas to stop.

Half her party had died in the fight for victory, but there were too many of the vile creatures to defeat. The terror had only intensified as one elf after another died from the torture inflicted. Celebrian's ears reverberated with the harsh choking sounds of the death of her friends and companions. Some gave in to the demands of their bodies; others simply willed their spirits to cease unable to withstand the imprisonment.

Her personal hell started when the sun set the next day. The head of the vile creatures had loomed over her slumped form. She had been tied roughly to a tree to prevent her escape. The ropes of her bindings cut into her wrists as she struggled to show defiance instead of submission.

It laughed at her as it reached out to caress her face with its filthy hand. 

"Such a pretty face. No wonder your husband desired you so. He will not when we are done."

Celebrian repressed a shudder as the hand stroked the tip of her ear. She repressed a scream as the nails of that hand scratched from her ear along her jaw to the tip of her chin.

"Love will not falter," she spat towards her captor.

It laughed harder as it yanked her circlet from her head and handed it to its assistant, whispering some hurried instructions in the dark, guttural language that matched the gruesome features of her captors.

It kicked her viciously in her side, cracking a rib.

"Did I ask you something, worthless horse?"

Celebrian bit her tongue as the other side of her face was marred as the first was. Blood welled up and dripped onto her lightly colored travel cloak. Her eyes stung with unshed tears.

"My, we're a brave elf aren't we? Don't worry. You'll scream soon enough."

I smiled as it pulled out its sword. Celebrian eyed the blade as it was bluntly swung back and forth. Time slowed as the blade was pointed downward and stabbed through the inner side of Celebrian's left thigh.

Her moan pierced the night.

"Ooooh, you aren't as simple as I thought. He'll not want you when he sees you."

Even through the haze of pain in her mind, Celebrian managed to follow the abrupt change in subject. 

Fierce eyes settled upon her captor, "Love does not fail."

Her captor hissed and spat at her, "I did not ask you to speak!"

The aide returned with her circlet which glowed slightly against the dreadful darkness. The main torturer stepped aside and gestured towards Celebrian. A twisted smirk appeared on the aide's scarred features. Its gloved hands moved quickly towards Celebrian, her circlet grasped between them.

She tried to move, but the original orc held her still. She would have screamed had her lungs been strong enough to move sound from her lips. The heated metal burned against her forehead and against the backs of her ears as it was pushed into place. Tremors ran through her body as shock from the pain began to mingle with the dullness where nerve endings had been burned out.

"He will climb into the bed of others to forget being bound to such as you," her captor whispered against her ear.

"Love _never falters," her shaky voice replied._

Its fingers combed through her hair. Strands broke off where the silver metal had burned against the silver mane filling the air with the acrid smell of burnt flesh and hair. Its hand grabbed a small hank of hair at the middle of her hairline. With a vicious twist, the hair was pulled loose from her head along with a piece of her scalp.

The orc glared at her lack of vocalization unsatisfied with the tears that trekked down her face. He sniffed at the hair in his hand and licked the skin that was still attached.

Celebrian made a sound of disgust, but refused to give her captor the pleasure of seeing her vomit.

"He will never wish to taste you again."

Her head snapped back up from the piece of dirt she had been studying, "Love _never_ fails."

Angered, her captor threw her hair into her lap. Rough hands jerked the now cool circlet away from her head. Muddied water from a nearby stream was mixed with salt and dumped over her entire body.

Her body jerked against her bindings as the liquid seeped into her open wounds.

"He will be disgusted when he sees you. Your children will not know your name."

"NEVER!" Her voice rang out.

The vile creature pulled Celebrian's own travel mirror out from behind its back. Elrond had given her the mirror as a gift when Arwen had been born. He had sworn the only thing more beautiful than his daughter was his wife.

Unable to look away, Celebrian gazed at herself in horror as the orc moved the mirror in front of her eyes.

She screamed.

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Celebrian started as her heart stopped in her chest for a moment. She shivered as she pulled her cloak closer to her body. The memories were supposed to lessen. Her mother had sworn it to be so, yet they appeared worse than ever. The harsh words spoken by her captor had grown more vicious after she screamed. 

Her spirit had almost departed when Elrond had found her. Now, she died for just a little bit longer every time the memory resurfaced.

"Celebrian, you should be resting," Elrond's voice echoed behind her. He had learned not to ask what was wrong after the fourth night of her waking and remembering. She would only sob and refuse to let him touch her. She still refused to let him in her bed and had only recently allowed him to move her into their rooms instead of the sick room.

Her eyes rested hollowly upon his, "I should be dead. You know this. Yet, I am not. Why did you save me?"

Elrond fought back the hurt that rose at her cold, questioning voice, "Because I love you."

She nodded and moved towards her bed, "You loved her. I am not her, Elrond. I will never be her again."

Anger flared in his eyes even as he helped Celebrian with her blankets.

"Then I will learn to love you as you are. I will not have my choice swayed by any other than the maker. Even that is questionable."

"You are stubborn to a fault."

Elrond sat on the edge of her bed. His arm trapped her as she tried to move away.

"Love never falters, love never fails. This is what you told our children. You are bound by your own words."

"Then unbind me. Let me go, Elrond. Find it your heart to love me enough to find happiness."

Elrond shook his head, "The only place you can go where I will not halt your escape is to the blessed lands of the West. And rest assured; I will pursue you even there."

Celebrian nodded and turned her face away. She would leave then. She would spare her husband the pain of her being and leave. In this, she would not falter, in this she would not fail.


End file.
